Tuesday, February 19, 2013

The Fear of the Lord

I got a baby shower invitation recently. I love babies and
baby showers, but something in the invitation struck me strangely. In a little
insert, it says that after the present opening “we will have a time when each
shower attendee is welcome to express a prayer over the mother-to-be. (Family
member/hostess) will open this time with a word from Scripture and then the
baby and family are covered with prayers regarding the parents raising the
child in the fear of the Lord…”

Huh? Fear of the Lord? I’m a pastor and this is not a term I
am overly familiar with. And it didn’t really sound like something I would pray
for an infant. I’m probably an overly practical or idealistic pray-er – either it’s
“Dear God, please don’t let my baby die in the night from SIDS” or “Dear God, I
wish so many children in this world were not hungry.” And that word fear struck me so negatively. So, like
a good theologian, I decided to dig in and see from whence my discomfort came
and how this term is really used in Scripture.

So, here goes. First, I read up on things you should not
fear. This is no deep research, just a cursory glance, but here are some
highlights of things not to fear:

“See, the Lord your God has given the
land to you; go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your
ancestors, has promised you; do not fear or be dismayed.” – Deut 1:21

“Do
not fear him, for I have handed him over to you, along with his people and
his land.” – Deut 3:2

“Be
strong and bold; have no fear or dread of them, because it is the Lord
your God who goes with you; he will not fail you or forsake you.” – Deut 31:6

“The Lord
is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the
stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” – Psalm 27:1

“The Lord
has taken away the judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies.
The king of Israel,
the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more.” - Zephaniah 3:15

Ok, so now I know what we are not supposed to fear. So what
is the fear of the Lord? According to another cursory research project, it is:

“Did
he not fear the Lord and entreat the favor of the Lord, and did not the Lord
change his mind about the disaster that he had pronounced against them?” –
Jeremiah 26:19

Lack thereof
is a cause for judgment - along with adulterers, false swearing,
oppressing hired workers, widows, or orphans, or thrusting aside the alien
(Malachi 3:5)

A
cause for church growth, accompanied by the comfort of the Holy Spirit
(Acts 9:31)

Motivation
for trying to persuade others of the gospel (2 Corinthians 5:11)

Then, just yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend a
workshop by Dr. Alyce McKenzie entitled “What Kind of Fool Are You? Preaching
and Teaching the Folly (and Wisdom) of the Bible). She outlined a pneumonic
device to remember “Wisdom’s Golden Nuggets” as follows:
F – the Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
O – Wisdom leads to an Order of life
G – Wisdom is a Gift from God.

She used Bob Dylan’s song, “Gotta Serve Somebody” to
say:

You’re gonna have to fear somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to fear somebody

So, I’m finding that “fear of the Lord” may be an odd phrase
to my postmodern ears. I don’t want to have to be afraid of anyone or anything,
although I often am. The news is full of things I should fear – west nile
virus, gun violence, internet hackers, politicians, etc. But, Scripture is
telling me that the only entity I should fear is God. And that fear looks more
like reverence, awe, and wonder, although, should I ever be in the full
presence of God, I’m sure there would be some knee-knocking trembling, too.

If I fear God, I have no cause to fear anything else. It
doesn’t promise an easy life, but it recognizes the true order of things. God
is sovereign; God is the beginning and end of all things. When I fear the other
stuff, I give it power in my life. And only God should have that kind of power
because God is always speaking life and love into our existence.

So, I may not embrace the language, but I can embrace the
concept. I want to walk in the wisdom of God, and this appears to be the starting
line.